True Love, True Trust
by Angel1188
Summary: A story of betrayal and learning to trust once more.
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: The characters are not mine. Just used for this purpose.

The possibility of a future when there was so much standing in the way. Trusts broken. Promises forgotten and lay shattered against the cobblestone streets.

I watched her from the distance, wanting to scream but instead, under cover of thousands of interchangeable faces, I watched her turn away and do her duty as a queen.

It was all over. Too much. Too long ago.

She had forgotten me and forgotten our journeys.


	2. Chapter 1: A Reunion

True Love, True Trust

Chapter 1: A Reunion

**Disclaimer: FFIX does not belong to me. I only use the characters and the world for my fits of writing need.**

Author's Notes: Yes, here I am, trying to redo True Love, True Trust several years after the fact. Let's see if it can actually be good this time around...

"This is not the way it should be," was the repeated protest. The silent plea as he watched the young woman before him continue her packing. "You deserve more than this." She was the closest thing he would ever have to a daughter, and he had guarded her fiercely ever since she was a child. But more than his paternal love for her, he was honor bound to watch over her. As a Knight. As the Captain of her Guard. She was his Queen, forever unto death. And now he was forced to watch her make one of the biggest mistakes of her life.

Queen Garnet Til Alexandros, sole ruler of the Kingdom of Alexandria paused in her packing to look over her shoulder to Adelbert Steiner, Captain of the Knights of Pluto and more importantly, her friend.

"Perhaps it is not the way it should be," Garnet replied, her gentle voice soft and full of regrets. "But it is the way it must be. What he offers is too important to turn down. The people are suffering, Steiner. His wealth and goods could do so much. Kuja destroyed Alexandria but so long as I live, I will not let my Kingdom fall. And I will do whatever I must in order to see her live on."

Steiner bowed his head down, the floor hard against his knee as he bowed to his Queen. "But Majesty..." He paused, and then looked up at Garnet, remembering the young woman as she had once been. Fierce and proud as she fought side by side with him and their companions five years ago. Since then, she had become a kind and wise ruler. But was that woman still in there? "Is this what will make you truly happy, Garnet? Is this the best choice, or is it the easy one?"

Garnet returned to her packing. "Make the preparations, Steiner," she commanded, ignoring the question. "We leave first thing in the morning."

It wasn't until Steiner was gone from her suite that she gave herself the luxury to consider his question. And deep in her heart, she already knew the answer. No, it would not make her happy. But she had not been happy in a long time. Her head bowed down as tears splashed against her cheeks. She would persevere. She had to.

The letter that reached him had been vague but offered enough information that he knew he couldn't turn away from it. She needed his help. No matter what had happened before, he could never turn his back on her. And so he came. In the darkness of night, he slipped through the gates of the great white city of Alexandria to where he was meeting his contact. It had been many years since he had walked these streets. Not since... not since the moment his heart had been ripped from his chest and she walked away.

The moon hung bright and full overhead at the docks when he arrived, cloaked in black and embraced by the darkness of the night. And there he waited, silent and watchful. A small couldn't help but quirk his lips as he heard the rhythmic jingle of heavy plate armor. The man could have purchased any armor he wished after the gallant fight against Kuja and Ozma, and yet he still wore what he had from so many fights and a bitterly harsh war.

Stepping into the light, where he could be easily seen, the hood was brought down. He couldn't help but smile as he looked at the armored man. Married life certainly suited him. He was still trim and hard from his years of fighting and training, but there was a sated softness to him from being content or so long.

"Rusty." As the name passed off of his lips, he smiled, blue eyes twinkling.

"Thief," was the reply, even if there was clear affection behind the word.

Their hands clasped together in greeting before there was an unspoken question asked. A need behind it. A need to know that she was safe and well. That the letter to come to Alexandria was not because it might be the last chance to see her. He stared at his companion, unable to voice his desperation. Even after so many years, she still pulled at his heart, still made him hungry in ways that no other woman had ever been able to.

"She is fine," was the reassurance. "She bears the mantle of power so well for one so young." But there was a sigh, and hesitation. It was that hesitation that had made him call on the Thief, after all."She is to be married in two months."

Pain. All he could feel was pain. He knew that he had lost her five years ago, and yet... the news that she would marry another carried an agony so painful that he felt as though he lay dying amidst the Iifa Tree's roots again. But he cleared his throat and nodded. "So for what purpose did you summon me to Alexandria?" he asked.

Hesitation before he continued. "My Queen requires a trusted escort to the Outer Continent where he betrothed is located. Once we make contact, we are to return to Alexandria where the wedding will take place." He paused, looking across to the blonde man. "I know I ask a lot of you to do this, but there is no one better suited to this task than you. And no one else I would entrust her life to more than you. So please, help me." He did not speak of his other reason of summoning this man. If he could at least remind his Queen of love, perhaps she would remember the duty she had to herself as much as she did to her people. Alexandria could not survive with a Queen already dead in the heart and blinded to love.

"You know how low it is, how un-Knightly it is, to ask me this," was the quiet, pained response. "But you do it anyway. And you already know that I can't say no to this. Not for her. So name me the time and place to meet and I'll be there."

His heart was too full for any other words beyond, "Thank you."

"How much longer until this escort arrives?" Garnet asked, arms folded in front of her. At Steiner's recommendation, they traveled small and light. Her things were packed in a satchel that could easily be carried, much as it had been so many years ago. Though unused for so long, her Tiger Racket was still in pristine shape, as was her White Magic and Summoning abilities. She shifted restlessly, hands smoothing out the smooth material of her orange one piece only offset by the white blouse she wore beneath it.

Steiner waited patiently, hands resting on his hips as he scanned the crowds. Next to him was his protege, a young woman roughly the same age as the Queen. Reziela had more than proven herself as a soldier and knight to both him and Beatrix. His fair General had insisted on accompanying them herself but Garnet had gently insisted that she stay behind to watch over their Kingdom in her absence. Steiner would miss her sorely while they were parted, but their duties to Queen and Kingdom came first.

Reziela looked about nervously. This was her first assignment away from the Castle, an even though she looked to Steiner for reassurance, at the moment, he had none to offer. Everyone was anxious about this trip, though for different reasons. And somehow, she felt as though she did not belong in this story. As if her mere presence could somehow change things for the worse and somewhere down the line, bad things were coming. But she had always been sensitive and worried about the future. A bit of a mystic, by her mother's reckoning. She had a little gift with magic, but her true power lay in her ability to catch glimpses of the future and the past. A seer, perhaps, if one wanted to believe in those things.

Time passed when a singular figure approached. And in that moment when the waiting group saw him, everything else stood still. All other pieces were forgotten for a moment.

A flush immediately bloomed on Reziela's cheeks. She had never seen such a handsome man in her life with his raggedly cut blond hair and the swagger that came from such confidence. Her heart beat faster, especially when his grey-blue eyes settled on her. The gaze was only an instant, but it felt as though an eternity had passed with his eyes watching her. In an instant, she was smitten. The woman deep inside of her was falling fast and hard. Some gut instinct deep down told her how special he was, and a part of her craved to know him better. Her insides leapt with joy as she saw his bag and realized that this beautiful and enchanting man was in fact their escort.

In the same moment that Reziela realized who the escort was, so did Garnet. Her cheeks grew pale instead and she turned to look at Steiner, lips barely moving as she spoke. "Low. Even for you, Steiner," she whispered before her hands slipped back to ensure that her hair was straight and smooth. A nervous gesture that she tried to halt as she folded her hands in front of her.

He approached, taking in a cursory look at those he would be traveling with before settling in on one woman. The only woman in his eyes. The years had been kind to her and she had only grown more beautiful as her face settled into its maturity. Once the body of a girl still developing, she had now truly earned the title of the most beautiful Princess... Queen now, he supposed. He swallowed hard. How could he hand her off to another man? Because he had no other choice.

Her fingers fluttered nervously, even as she tried to keep them still. It had been five years since she had seen him, and yet he had not changed a bit. Still so handsome and confident, but she saw something else there now. A hardness that had never been present. And she knew somewhere inside that she was at least partially to blame for that hardness. One hand extended out to him in greeting.

"Zidane," Garnet murmured. "It has been too long."


End file.
